Webb sought felony conviction, jail in Koschman death

He details final report: 'The truth is we did not find anything'

March 25, 2014|By Jason Meisner, Tribune reporter

Special Prosecutor Dan Webb. (Michael Tercha, Chicago Tribune)

Just days from what promised to be one of Chicago's more sensational trials, former U.S. Attorney Dan Webb and his legal team were busy prepping witnesses and finalizing trial strategy when a deal with defendant Richard "R.J." Vanecko was struck.

In an interview, Webb, the special prosecutor appointed to probe the 2004 death of David Koschman, revealed that he set two ironclad conditions: that Vanecko, former Mayor Richard M. Daley's nephew, plead guilty to a felony and serve jail time.

But there was one development Webb was not expecting: Vanecko insisted on apologizing in court to Koschman's mother, Nanci, his lawyers said.

"That was something that he offered to do, and I accepted it," Webb said. "We made it part of the plea agreement, but if they had refused to apologize, we would have still done the deal."

A few days later, in a packed courtroom in Rolling Meadows, Vanecko pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, admitting he had thrown the punch that led to Koschman's death during a drunken altercation in the Rush Street night life district. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail, placed on probation for 21/2 years and ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution to Nanci Koschman.

At the hearing, Vanecko turned to Koschman, who was seated in the gallery, and said he was sorry and wished he could undo what he'd done. She mouthed back the words, "Thank you."

"I thought it was very moving," Webb said. "If there is any way to have closure to a matter, it was done in the right way."

On Monday, Koschman indicated she had yet to find the closure she was looking for, filing a federal lawsuit that alleges a cover-up among Chicago police, Cook County prosecutors and City Hall in the investigation of her son's death. She said she realized after reading a voluminous final report by Webb that "my fight was not over."

In the recent interview at his Loop law offices, Webb gave the Tribune a unique look at how he and his team of attorneys impaneled a special grand jury, pieced together their investigation and brought criminal charges in a case that police and prosecutors had twice deemed self-defense without ever interviewing Vanecko.

After a 17-month probe that involved nearly 150 interviews, a review of more than 300,000 pages of records and cost taxpayers more than $1.1 million, the case came to an official close last month after Webb released the 162-page report detailing his findings, including that there was no evidence that Daley or his family members had exerted political pressure to shield Vanecko from criminal charges.

The report made clear that the involvement of a Daley relative colored the initial investigation as well as a later probe that was prompted by a 2011 Sun-Times series on Koschman's death, but in the end no one but Vanecko was charged with wrongdoing.

Webb said the information in the report "stands for itself," and he declined to answer specific questions about its contents or what was left out, citing grand jury secrecy.

"We worked very hard to tear apart the evidence," Webb said. "We were looking to find evidence of (improper influence by the Daleys). But as the report says, the truth is we did not find anything."

A U.S. attorney in Chicago in the 1980s, Webb has had four stints as a special prosecutor in his nearly 40-year legal career, including winning a conviction of President Ronald Reagan's national security adviser in the Iran-Contra scandal. But it was his investigation into Koschman's death that he considers the most crucial.

"I spent my entire adult life here as a trial lawyer, as part of the system," Webb said. "I thought it was important to try to bring transparency to what happened and try to restore public confidence. And make sure the public knew that justice may be a little late here, but we were still going to make sure it occurred."

When Judge Michael Toomin ruled in April 2012 that a special prosecutor was needed to probe the Koschman case, it wasn't long before Webb's name landed on a very short list. Within days, Webb got a call from Judge Paul Biebel, who presides over the Leighton Criminal Court Building, asking if he would be interested. After considering how long it would take him away from his other duties, Webb met with Toomin and agreed.

County rules allowed Webb's Winston & Strawn law firm — one of the priciest in town — to bill at a special prosecutor's rate that amounted to less than a quarter of Webb's typical $1,000-an-hour fee. In all, Webb said, lawyers for the firm logged more than 15,000 hours on the case, much of it done for free.

Like a typical grand jury, there were 23 citizens impaneled in Webb's probe. But instead of sitting at the criminal courthouse at 26th and California, Webb brought them to his sprawling Wacker Drive offices to meet in a windowless mock trial courtroom and later in a conference room with stunning views of the city. Webb's special grand jury heard only the Koschman case.